Themes, Topics, and Structure of Historical Novels in Southern Vietnam in the Early Twentieth Century

Southern Vietnamese literature in the first half of the 20th century has recently attracted considerable attention from researchers. However, the themes, topics, and structure of historical novels in this period have not received adequate attention. This article uses an analytical-synthetic method to examine the characteristics and features through careful reading of primary (first-published novels) and secondary (later-published novels in anthologies) sources, developing the research problem. The question posed is: are the themes, topics, and structure of historical novels similar to and different from other genres, such as socio-psychological novels, detective novels, and chivalrous novels? This highlights the crucial and pivotal role of works from this period in the development of modern Vietnamese literature.